Meet Tenley Nicole

Our fan club was patiently waiting for us to arrive home. Thanks to Ben and our neighbors Jason and Melissa for keeping Abby and Lainey safe and sound while we were at the hospital!

All ready to head home. We weren't too sure about strapping our precious pea into that car seat for the first time, but Nurse Barb once again came to the rescue and helped us out!

While the hospital claims all newborns get those hats for warmth, Nick and I think the real reason is to cover up those cone heads! They do get better!

Tenley meeting Grandma Patty for the first time. Since Nick and I hadn't eaten since the night before Tenley was born, Grandma Patty and Grandpa Steve picked up some McDonalds (my favorite) for us while T-Bird was getting her first bath. A cheeseburger, fries and a diet coke, of course!, had never tasted so good!

Somethings you can count on in life...death, taxes, and me being ten minutes late in general. So it was no surprise at my doctor's appointment on November 5th (just 4 days before Tenley was born) that I was not effaced or dilated at all. I wasn't given much hope of actually having Tenley on her due date of November 11th (also my grandma's 90th birthday!) when the good doc went ahead and scheduled my next appointment for the day after my due date.

Imagine our surprise on the morning of November 9th...As Nick and I were watching the morning weather and traffic reports around 6:50 am and my water broke. My first thought was, "Oh, no...I might have just wet the bed." Second thought, "I just went to the bathroom, so I don't think I wet the bed." Third thought, "Who would know if I wet the bed or my water broke--Beth!" After a quick phone chat, Beth was pretty sure that I had not wet the bed (good news there) and that I should probably call the doctor's office. Thank you for the insight Bethie!

Nick and I checked in via phone with the doctor on call who assured us that we had a little time before we needed to be at the hospital. She suggested we head toward St. Vincent Carmel around 9 o'clock. That was great because bills needed to be paid, sheets needed to be changed, and I needed a shower before this great adventure!

Once we arrived at the hospital, Dr. Neff greeted us and I was presented with one of those high fashion hospital gowns and hooked up to a machine that monitors contractions. Lo and behold, I wasn't having many. That's when I met my friend "Pitocin." I like to say that pitocin and I danced all day because that's exactly what we did. Thank goodness for Nurse Barb! She was the best. Every half hour Nurse Barb would come in and crank the pitocin machine up one more level and offer me a Popsicle. The day passed pretty uneventfully. We watched a few Las Vegas re-runs and Indiana Jones and the Legend of the Crystal Skull. At 5:30, Dr. Neff was getting ready to call it a day. With a smile on her face she reminded us that pitocin induced labor could take anywhere from 12-24 hours and unfortunately it looked like I might be on the 24 hour end of things. Okay, aside from that fact that I was starving, I was okay with that. I masterminded a grand plan of watching "Dancing with the Stars" and then thought I'd ask for a little something to help me sleep. Tenley had other plans. Like clockwork, Nurse Barb checked in at 6:00 to crank up the pitocin (Level 17 by this point:)) and offer me a Popsicle. I passed on the Popsicle but thought I might make a run for the potty and Nick started watching Kung Fu Panda. When I returned to what had been my happy hospital bed, something was different....ah yes, pain! At 6:10, my quiet, uneventful day changed. I quickly asked Nurse Barb for some pain relief and was offered Nubain...not exactly what I had been hoping for, but I was up for anything. Nurse Barb might of thought I was a bit on the weak side because she offered to check me--whoa, I was a whopping 2 cm. I thought it was going to be a very long night. After about three more serious contractions with no relief from the Nubain, I asked Nurse Barb if maybe that pesky anesthesiologist could be tracked down. At 7:10 I was blessed with an epidural--ahhh, sweet relief! I highly recommend it. Along with the epidural came a new nurse--Nurse Dacina who was equally great. Nurse Dacina suggested that I rest for an hour and then she'd come and see how things were going. So, right on schedule, she returned and informed me that I was 10 cm. We were ready to have this baby. She called Dr. D (short for DelRosario--she's awesome, too!) and by 8:30 we had the show on the road. Just 40 short minutes later, Tenley Nicole arrived at 9:10 pm weighing 7lbs 6 oz and measuring 20 3/4 inches long. The picture above is the very first one that her proud daddy snapped of her. Yes, that head was a little coney!